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Annual SERRV sale at Memorial Presbyterian

Items from around the world will be offered Sunday at Memorial Presbyterian Church during the annual SERRV sale. Contributed photo.

Memorial Presbyterian Church will conduct its annual SERRV holiday sale from 9:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. Sunday in the church’s fellowship hall, 36 Sevilla St.

SERRV International is described as a non-profit organization which promotes the social and economic progress of people in developing regions of the world by purchasing and marketing their crafts in a just and direct manner.

Featured at the Memorial Presbyterian sale will be works of artisans from Vietnam, Cambodia, West Bank, Chile, India, Bangladesh, Haiti, Kenya, Indonesia, Peru, Nepal and other countries. Included are jewelry, scarves, baskets, ornaments and decorative items for the home.

Formerly called Sales Exchange Refugee Rehabilitation and Vocation, SERRV International markets crafts through churches, socially responsible retailers, and community groups throughout the United States, as well as sales through direct mail. It was originally created in 1949 by the Church of the Brethren to assist World War II refugees and received a distribution network in the early 1960s from Church World Service.

Presently, SERRV International is marketing around $6 million annually, in cooperation with artisans in 30-plus developing countries.